[[Second Life]] (SL) evolved as an idea by founder and former [[Linden Lab]] CEO, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Rosedale Philip Rosedale] (aka Philip Linden). He envisioned a vast green, continuous landscape, distributed across multiple servers — and went on to build it. While dreaming of virtual worlds since his childhood, Rosedale first thought of connecting computers via the Internet and creating a virtual world in 1994. In 1999, he founded Linden Lab (LL). [[User:Andrew Linden|Andrew Linden]] stated that Linden Lab was started as a hardware company geared towards the research and development of {{Wikipedia|Haptic_technology|haptics}}. Although work was underway on a prototype called "[http://secondlife.wikia.com/wiki/The_Rig The Rig], haptics were subsequently abandoned due to heavy patent concentration. The Linden Lab employees — "Lindens" for short — needed a virtual world to go with their hardware, so in 2001 they started building what became LindenWorld and, later, Second Life: the 3D virtual world with user generated content, where users could interact with each other in realtime.

+

[[Second Life]] (SL) evolved as an idea by founder and former [[Linden Lab]] CEO, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Rosedale Philip Rosedale] (aka Philip Linden). He envisioned a vast green, continuous landscape, distributed across multiple servers — and went on to build it. While he dreamed of virtual worlds since his childhood, in 1994, Rosedale first thought of connecting computers via the Internet and creating a virtual world. In 1999, he founded Linden Lab (LL). [[User:Andrew Linden|Andrew Linden]] stated that Linden Lab started as a hardware company geared towards the research and development of {{Wikipedia|Haptic_technology|haptics}}. Although work was underway on a prototype called "[http://secondlife.wikia.com/wiki/The_Rig The Rig], haptics were subsequently abandoned due to heavy patent concentration. The Linden Lab employees — commonly known as "Lindens" — needed a virtual world to go with their hardware, so in 2001 they started building "LindenWorld", as [[Second_Life_in_2002/News|described in an early news story]].

−

In this early state, Linden World wasn't open to the public, was very gun-focused (like a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooter_game shooter game]) and its [[avatar]]s were made out of [[prim]]s (called [[Primitar]]s). This video shows how the world looked back then and how users could interact with it.<ref>The video is taken from the blog entry [http://replay.web.archive.org/20090210110603/http://blog.secondlife.com/2006/08/18/historical-movie-lindenworld-august-2001/ Historical Movie - LindenWorld August 2001]</ref>

+

In this early state, LindenWorld wasn't open to the public, was very gun-focused (like a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooter_game shooter game]) and its [[avatar]]s were made out of [[prim]]s (called [[Primitar]]s). This video shows how the world looked back then and how users could interact with it:<ref>The video is taken from the blog post "[http://replay.web.archive.org/20090210110603/http://blog.secondlife.com/2006/08/18/historical-movie-lindenworld-august-2001/ Historical Movie - LindenWorld August 2001]"</ref>

: {{KBvideo|uK3x3FNlleU|640|385|type=youtube}}

: {{KBvideo|uK3x3FNlleU|640|385|type=youtube}}

−

LindenWorld was renamed into Second Life.

+

LindenWorld was renamed into Second Life: a 3D virtual world with user generated content, where users could interact with each other in realtime.

−

{{Quotation|<p>"Originally, during the Alpha period, the grid was known as Lindenworld. As we were getting ready to launch the Beta, we decided we needed a name that would convey the expansiveness, involvement and complexity we hoped would characterize this world as it grew. We started by debating the merits of a 'place' name versus a 'descriptive' name. We believed a place name would give people a sense of destination, and possibly some added layer of meaning. And we thought a descriptive name would help people understand this new concept of a shared, 3D collaborative space."</p>

+

{{Quotation|<p>"Originally, during the Alpha period, the grid was known as Lindenworld. As we were getting ready to launch the Beta, we decided we needed a name that would convey the expansiveness, involvement and complexity we hoped would characterize this world as it grew. We started by debating the merits of a 'place' name versus a 'descriptive' name. We believed a place name would give people a sense of destination, and possibly some added layer of meaning. And we thought a descriptive name would help people understand this new concept of a shared, 3D collaborative space.</p>

−

<p>"We had a lot of ideas for place names --- one of my favorites was Sansara, which was not only euphonic, but had an interesting meaning in the original Sanskrit, meaning roughly 'ever changing world'. Ultimately, though, we chose to go with a descriptive name, and looked at many derivatives of Terra, Viva, and life. We kept coming back to Life2, and then landed on Second Life as more interesting, more evocative and more what we hoped the world could become as it evolved and grew to be as big as life."</p>

+

<p>"We had a lot of ideas for place names --- one of my favorites was Sansara, which was not only euphonic, but had an interesting meaning in the original Sanskrit, meaning roughly 'ever changing world'. Ultimately, though, we chose to go with a descriptive name, and looked at many derivatives of Terra, Viva, and life. We kept coming back to Life2, and then landed on Second Life as more interesting, more evocative and more what we hoped the world could become as it evolved and grew to be as big as life.</p>

−

<p>"And that's how it came about!"</p> | -Robin Linden, former VP of Marketing and Community Development<ref>The old forum post isn't available anymore and the quote is retrieved from http://secondlife.wikia.com/wiki/Linden_World</ref>}}

+

<p>"And that's how it came about!"</p> | Robin Linden, former VP of Marketing and Community Development<ref>Sadly, the old forum post isn't available anymore and the quote is retrieved from http://secondlife.wikia.com/wiki/Linden_World</ref>}}

== 2002 ==

== 2002 ==

−

On March 13, the first [[Resident]], Steller Sunshine, joined Second Life and the public beta started seven months later in October. The [[grid]] consisted of 16 [[region]]s, the first one being called [http://slurl.com/secondlife/Da%20Boom/128/128/2 Da Boom], which might be a reference to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bang Big Bang] of this virtual world. Da Boom, as well as the other early region additions were all named after alleyways in San Francisco. This was a nod to Linden Lab's original location on Linden Street. The original San francisco regions, from November of 2002, included [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77864,+-122.40341 Clara], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Clyde+Street,+San+Francisco,+CA Clyde], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.782533,+-122.392261 Da Boom], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.783645,+-122.391832 Federal], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.778378,+-122.397529 Freelon], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.78514,+-122.39844 Hawthorne], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.781159,+-122.407368 Minna], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.780854,+-122.406820 Natoma], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.78033,+-122.39567 Ritch], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77908,+-122.40385 Shipley], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.780820,+-122.391891 Stanford], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Stillman+Street,+San+Francisco,+CA Stillman], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Taber+Alley,+San+Francisco,+CA Taber], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Varney+Place,+San+Francisco,+CA Varney], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77956,+-122.39697 Welsh], and [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77994,+-122.39611 Zoe].

+

On March 13, the first [[Resident]], Steller Sunshine, joined Second Life. The public beta started seven months later in October, and early avatars looked like this:

+

+

: [[File:Sl_history_website_2002.jpg]]

+

+

The [[grid]] consisted of 16 [[region]]s, the first one being called [http://slurl.com/secondlife/Da%20Boom/128/128/2 Da Boom], which Residents have speculated serves as a symbolic reference to the "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bang Big Bang]" conception of this virtual world. Da Boom, as well as the other early region additions were all named after alleyways in San Francisco. This was a nod to Linden Lab's original location on Linden Street. The original San francisco regions, from November of 2002, included [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77864,+-122.40341 Clara], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Clyde+Street,+San+Francisco,+CA Clyde], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.782533,+-122.392261 Da Boom], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.783645,+-122.391832 Federal], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.778378,+-122.397529 Freelon], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.78514,+-122.39844 Hawthorne], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.781159,+-122.407368 Minna], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.780854,+-122.406820 Natoma], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.78033,+-122.39567 Ritch], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77908,+-122.40385 Shipley], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.780820,+-122.391891 Stanford], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Stillman+Street,+San+Francisco,+CA Stillman], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Taber+Alley,+San+Francisco,+CA Taber], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Varney+Place,+San+Francisco,+CA Varney], [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77956,+-122.39697 Welsh], and [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=37.77994,+-122.39611 Zoe].

: [[Image:Agni 2002-11-21.jpg|800px]]

: [[Image:Agni 2002-11-21.jpg|800px]]

+

+

Second Life closed beta started in November 2002 and lasted until April 2003 when public beta started. Read more about [http://secondlife-online.com/content/site-beta.php History of SL Beta].

+

== 2003 ==

== 2003 ==

−

While population and land slowly grew, Linden Lab released Second Life in June 2003. As shocking as it may seem in hindsight, back then, SL had neither a currency nor were Residents able to teleport. It was in the end of 2003 when the Linden Dollar was introduced, and the [[LindeX]] currency exchange followed about two years later.<ref>See [[History of Second Life/LindeX Chatlog|chatlog]] with {{User2|Peter Millionsofus}} (formerly Lawrence Linden).</ref>

+

While population and land slowly grew, Linden Lab released Second Life in June 2003. As shocking as it may seem in hindsight, back then, SL had neither a currency nor were Residents able to teleport. It was in the end of 2003 when the [[Linden Dollar]] was introduced, and the [[LindeX]] currency exchange followed about two years later.<ref>[[History of Second Life/LindeX Chatlog|See chat log]] with {{User2|Peter Millionsofus}} (formerly Lawrence Linden).</ref>

−

In order to restrict [[simulator]] usage, a tax system was introduced which required every Resident to pay a weekly fee, depending on the prims they had [[rez]]zed inworld. This system was easy to trick by packing all prims into the [[inventory]] on payment due day, then re-rezzing them again a day later.<ref>See the Google video [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5182759758975402950 Glimpse inside a Metaverse: The virtual world Second Life]</ref>

+

In order to restrict [[simulator]] resource usage, a tax system was introduced which required every Resident to pay a weekly fee, depending on the prims they had [[rez]]zed inworld. This system was easy to trick by packing all prims into the [[inventory]] on payment due day, then re-rezzing them again a day later.<ref>See the Google video "[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5182759758975402950 Glimpse inside a Metaverse: The virtual world Second Life]"</ref>

The first Second Life trailer was shown in 2003:

The first Second Life trailer was shown in 2003:

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: {{KBvideo|KHH2CAE9Y6o|640|385|type=youtube}}

: {{KBvideo|KHH2CAE9Y6o|640|385|type=youtube}}

−

The first Linden official blog post was made on October 4th, 2004 on the [https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/features/blog/2004/10/04/alife-and-slife Official Second Life Blog].

+

The [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/aLife-and-sLife/ba-p/519632 first Linden official blog post] was made by Philip Linden on October 4, 2004 on the first Official Second Life Blog.

The first [[Telehub]]s were introduced in Version 1.1.0, with the feature of paying to teleport from one Telehub to another.

The first [[Telehub]]s were introduced in Version 1.1.0, with the feature of paying to teleport from one Telehub to another.

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== 2005 ==

== 2005 ==

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On February 13, Linden Lab offered "amnesty" for underaged Residents, in case they'd want to be beta testers for the new [[Teen Second Life]] (TSL) service. Before this time, Second Life was only open for Residents 18 years and older; being 17 or younger resulted in a ban. The Residents were transferred to TSL, also known as the "Teen Grid" (TG), which was exclusively for teens — with the exception of approved adults like school teachers — and no communication with the [[Main Grid]] (MG) was possible. The Teen Grid was only open during Linden-desginated staffing hours. Also, during the first few months of [http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/pic.aspx?ID=28438 TG Beta], access was restricted to those that were given an invite by an existing Resident or Linden Lab. Teens counted down to [http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/pic.aspx?ID=27618 1000 Residents on December 21, 2005]. [[#Teen Second Life|See "Teen Second Life" below for what happened in subsequent years.]]

+

Teen Second Life was started in 2005. [[#Teen Second Life|See "Teen Second Life" below.]]

+

+

In March 2005 Second Life version 1.6 was rolled out bringing with it a number of features including QuickTime media streaming and a standard Second Life building interface.

In late 2005, Linden Lab removed most Telehubs on the grid, opening the way for "direct teleport" from one point to another. Previously, after teleporting, Residents had to fly from a Telehub to their specific destination. The Telehubs were mostly converted into [[Infohub]]s, meant to be community gathering spaces and "welcome areas" for new Residents.

In late 2005, Linden Lab removed most Telehubs on the grid, opening the way for "direct teleport" from one point to another. Previously, after teleporting, Residents had to fly from a Telehub to their specific destination. The Telehubs were mostly converted into [[Infohub]]s, meant to be community gathering spaces and "welcome areas" for new Residents.

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== 2006 ==

== 2006 ==

−

On May 1, Resident [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anshe_Chung Anshe Chung] was featured on the cover of the U.S. magazine BusinessWorld, reported to be the first person becoming an Real Life (RL) millionaire due to Second Life business. This story brought great media coverage and pitched the population growth further.

+

On May 1, Resident [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anshe_Chung Anshe Chung] was featured on the cover of the U.S. magazine BusinessWorld, reported to be the first person becoming a real-life millionaire due to Second Life business. This story brought great media coverage and pitched the population growth further.

On October 18 at precisely 8:05:45 PST, the 1,000,000th Resident joined Second Life. A special [[Linden Bear]] was created to celebrate this milestone.

On October 18 at precisely 8:05:45 PST, the 1,000,000th Resident joined Second Life. A special [[Linden Bear]] was created to celebrate this milestone.

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== 2007 ==

== 2007 ==

−

The client was [[Source_downloads|open-sourced]] in January<ref>Open sourcing the client in January 2007 http://blog.secondlife.com/2007/01/08/embracing-the-inevitable/</ref>, and Residents were asked to take part in the [[Architecture Working Group]] (AWG), influence its development. The AWG had its first meeting on [[AWG Meeting_1|September 13, 2007]].

+

The client was [[Source_downloads|open-sourced]] in January<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Embracing-the-Inevitable/ba-p/548113</ref>, and Residents were asked to take part in the [[Architecture Working Group]] (AWG) to influence its development. The AWG had its first meeting on [[AWG Meeting_1|September 13, 2007]].

−

On April 13, Linden Lab announced the eventual removal of the profile rating system<ref>[https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/features/blog/2007/04/12/removal-of-ratings-in-beta Removal of Ratings in Beta], blog post no longer available — [http://classic-web.archive.org/web/*/https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/features/blog/2007/04/12/removal-of-ratings-in-beta wasn't on the Wayback Machine either]</ref>, which was used for social reputation but also prone to being abused and misunderstood.

+

On April 13, Linden Lab announced the eventual removal of the profile rating system<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Removal-of-Ratings-in-Beta/ba-p/572661</ref>, which was used for social reputation but also prone to being abused and misunderstood.

−

On May 21, [[WindLight]] atmospheric rendering was announced<ref>Windlight announcement: http://blog.secondlife.com/2007/05/21/windlight-atmospheric-rendering-comes-to-second-life/</ref> and became part of the main release in Viewer version [[Release_Notes/Second_Life_Release/1.19.1|1.19.1]] on April 2.<ref>Windlight release: http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/04/02/the-dawning-of-a-new-viewer-second-life-1191-now-available/</ref> WindLight improved Second Life's graphics dramatically.

+

On May 21, the [[WindLight]] atmospheric rendering was announced<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/WindLight-atmospheric-rendering-comes-to-Second-Life/ba-p/577091</ref> and became part of the main release in Viewer version [[Release_Notes/Second_Life_Release/1.19.1|1.19.1]] on April 2.<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/The-Dawning-of-a-New-Viewer-Second-Life-1-19-1-Now-Available/ba-p/617737</ref> WindLight improved Second Life's graphics dramatically.

: {{KBvideo|h4BMmq4dono|640|385|type=youtube}}

: {{KBvideo|h4BMmq4dono|640|385|type=youtube}}

+

+

On August 2nd, Linden Lab released its new main viewer (V1.18.1-2) with in-world voice chat capabilities.

== 2008 ==

== 2008 ==

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On February 22, Blue Linden announced that there would be a new set of city-style themed regions named [https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Bay_City Bay City]. Bay City opened for viewing on May 8, 2008, and on May 24, 2009, Bay City content was released to Residents as templates for their own creations.

On February 22, Blue Linden announced that there would be a new set of city-style themed regions named [https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Bay_City Bay City]. Bay City opened for viewing on May 8, 2008, and on May 24, 2009, Bay City content was released to Residents as templates for their own creations.

−

Philip Rosedale announced his stepping down as CEO in mid-March<ref name="philipCEO">Philips announcement to step back from CEO: http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/03/14/changing-my-job/</ref>, and introduced new CEO [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_D._Kingdon Mark D. Kingdon] (M Linden) one month later.<ref>M Linden announced as new CEO: http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/04/22/announcing-our-new-ceo/</ref>. Philip continued to serve as Chairman on the [http://lindenlab.com/about/management Board of Directors].<ref name="philipCEO" />

+

Philip Rosedale announced his stepping down as CEO in mid-March<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Changing-my-Job/ba-p/614913</ref>, and introduced new CEO [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_D._Kingdon Mark D. Kingdon] (M Linden) one month later.<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Announcing-our-New-CEO/ba-p/624302</ref>. Philip continued to serve as Chairman on the [http://lindenlab.com/about/management Board of Directors].

−

The first cross-grid teleport was achieved on July 8<ref>http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/07/08/ibm-linden-lab-interoperability-announcement/</ref>, and shortly after on July 31, the [[Open Grid Public Beta]] began.<ref>http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/07/31/open-grid-public-beta-begins-today/</ref>

+

The first cross-grid teleport to an OpenSim grid was achieved on June 30, [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/IBM-and-Linden-Lab-Interoperability-Announcement/bc-p/634538 announced on July 8], and shortly after on July 31, the [[Open Grid Public Beta]] began.<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Open-Grid-Public-Beta-begins-today/ba-p/637169</ref>

−

Scripting performance enhancer [[Mono]] was launched in August, as part of the [[Release_Notes/Second_Life_Server/1.24|1.24 Server]] deploy<ref>Blog about the Mono launch: http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/08/20/mono-launch/</ref>

+

Scripting performance enhancer [[Mono]] was launched in August, as part of the [[Release_Notes/Second_Life_Server/1.24|1.24 Server]] deploy<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Mono-Launch/ba-p/637718</ref>

== 2009 ==

== 2009 ==

−

On January 20, Linden Lab announced that it acquired the SL online marketplaces OnRez and XStreet SL (formerly SL Exchange) in order to merge and integrate them into a web shopping service for virtual goods that would become the [http://marketplace.secondlife.com Second Life Marketplace].<ref>http://blog.secondlife.com/2009/01/20/xstreet-sl-and-onrez-to-join-linden-lab/</ref>

+

On January 20, Linden Lab announced that it acquired the SL online marketplaces OnRez and XStreet SL (formerly SL Exchange) in order to merge and integrate them into a web shopping service for virtual goods that would become the [http://marketplace.secondlife.com Second Life Marketplace].<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/XStreet-SL-and-OnRez-to-Join-Linden-Lab/ba-p/639820</ref>

−

In March, Linden Lab started a project to create [[Zindra]], a new continent specifically designed for [[Adult]] content. Changes to [[Maturity ratings]] policies went live on September 15, and Zindra came online in October 2009.

+

In March, Linden Lab started a project to create [[Zindra]], a new continent specifically designed for [[Adult]] content. Changes to [[Maturity ratings]] policies went live on September 15, and Zindra came online in October.

−

In August, former VP of Product Tom Hale (T Linden) gave a tour of the new [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-7pGtebYy4 Second Life 2.0 Viewer] due to be launched in 2010. Earlier in June 2009, [http://www.massively.com/2009/06/12/second-life-2-0-a-sneak-peek-at-the-new-user-interface/ Massively posted a sneak preview].

+

In August, former VP of Product Tom Hale (T Linden) gave a tour of the new [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-7pGtebYy4 Second Life 2.0 Viewer] due to be launched in 2010. Earlier in June 2009, Massively posted a sneak preview.

== 2010 ==

== 2010 ==

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On January 29, Linden Lab [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Avatars-Unite/ba-p/654212 acquired Avatars United]. Avatars United was a social network for users of multiple virtual worlds to connect.

On January 29, Linden Lab [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Avatars-Unite/ba-p/654212 acquired Avatars United]. Avatars United was a social network for users of multiple virtual worlds to connect.

−

On February 9, Linden Lab launched the new Second Life Forums<ref>Old blog link: https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/community/blog/2010/02/09/new-forums-launched</ref>. The Second Life Forums were transitioned to Jive Clearspace software, and the old vBulletin-based forums were archived.

+

On February 9, Linden Lab launched the new Second Life Forums<ref>http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Community-General/New-Forums-Launched/ba-p/654922</ref>, powered by Jive Clearspace software. The old vBulletin-based forums were archived.

On February 23, Linden Lab announced the [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Second-Life-Viewer-2-Beta-Now-Available/bc-p/655593 new Second Life Viewer 2.0 Public Beta]. Viewer 2 [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Unveiling-An-Improved-New-Resident-Experience/ba-p/657072 went out of beta and was launched as the main Viewer] on March 31.

On February 23, Linden Lab announced the [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Second-Life-Viewer-2-Beta-Now-Available/bc-p/655593 new Second Life Viewer 2.0 Public Beta]. Viewer 2 [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Unveiling-An-Improved-New-Resident-Experience/ba-p/657072 went out of beta and was launched as the main Viewer] on March 31.

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On June 24, Mark Kingdon [http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/linden-lab-announces-management-changes-97074779.html stepped down as CEO of Linden Lab]. Philip Rosedale was named interim CEO, and CFO Bob Komin (BK Linden) assumed the additional role of COO.

On June 24, Mark Kingdon [http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/linden-lab-announces-management-changes-97074779.html stepped down as CEO of Linden Lab]. Philip Rosedale was named interim CEO, and CFO Bob Komin (BK Linden) assumed the additional role of COO.

−

On July 22, Philip Linden announced [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Changes-to-Burning-Life/ba-p/659136 that Burning Life will be renamed to BURN 2.0] starting this year. [http://www.burn2.org burn2.org] will be the website for news and information about this unique community event.

+

On July 22, Philip Linden announced [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/Changes-to-Burning-Life/ba-p/659136 that Burning Life will be renamed to BURN 2.0]. [http://www.burn2.org burn2.org] became the website for news and information about this unique community event.

−

On September 23, Linden Lab has announced that [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Saying-Farewell-to-Avatars-United/ba-p/666569 Avatars United will be shut down on September 29, 2010.]

+

On September 23, Linden Lab announced that [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Saying-Farewell-to-Avatars-United/ba-p/666569 Avatars United will be shut down on September 29, 2010.]

−

On October 13, Jack Linden announced that [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Tools-and-Technology/Mesh-Import-Open-Beta-Starts-Today/ba-p/668752 Mesh Import Beta Starts Today] on the preview/test grid called [[Aditi]].

+

On October 13, Jack Linden announced "[http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Tools-and-Technology/Mesh-Import-Open-Beta-Starts-Today/ba-p/668752 Mesh Import Beta Starts Today]" on the preview/test grid called [[Aditi]].

−

On December 23, BK Linden announced that [http://lindenlab.com/pressroom/releases/12_23_10 Rod Humble became the new CEO of Linden Lab].

+

On December 23, BK Linden announced that [http://lindenlab.com/pressroom/releases/12_23_10 Rod Humble (Rodvik Linden) became the new CEO of Linden Lab].

== 2011 ==

== 2011 ==

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On March 29th, Linden Lab introduced the [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Launching-the-SL-Viewer-with-Basic-and-Advanced-Modes/ba-p/783655 Basic mode] in Viewer 2 to improve new Resident experience in Second Life. The previous user interface is now the "Advanced mode".

On March 29th, Linden Lab introduced the [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Launching-the-SL-Viewer-with-Basic-and-Advanced-Modes/ba-p/783655 Basic mode] in Viewer 2 to improve new Resident experience in Second Life. The previous user interface is now the "Advanced mode".

−

== Teen Second Life ==

+

: [[File:Basic_mode.png|640px]]

−

On January 1st, 2006, the [http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/pic.aspx?ID=46258 TG opened 24/7].

+

On June 2nd, at 4pm PT Linden Lab performed a load test for [https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/GroupChatTest Group Chat] on the ADITI Beta grid. Many participants attended to test out group chat in Oatmeal and GC Test regions.

−

In March 2006 Global Kids was the first educational organization to enter Teen Second Life, opening an island.

+

On July 26th, Linden Lab launched the new social web profiles.

−

On December 24th, 2006 [http://infoisland.org/2006/12/24/eye4you-alliance-teen-island-opens/ Eye4You Alliance Island was opened] in Teen Second Life. [http://eye4youalliance.youthtech.info/ Eye4you Alliance island closed] on 12th July 2009.

+

On August 23rd, [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Inworld/Mesh-goes-gridwide-Create-sell-buy-amp-enjoy-all-new-things-in/bc-p/1056053 Mesh went gridwide] and now all Second Life residents can benefit from the new Mesh technology.

−

As of January, 2007, Linden Lab started to host [https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Office_Hours/TG TG Office Hours] in [[Teen Second Life]].

+

== 2012 ==

−

On March 17, 2007, Blue and Philip Linden hosted a townhall meeting on GK island about [http://www.holymeatballs.org/2007/03/sl_blue_and_philip_linden_pres.html past, present, and future of TSL].

+

On February 16th, Linden Lab announced details about [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Take-a-Sneak-Peek-at-the-Pathfinding-Experiments-Being-Conducted/ba-p/1386511 Pathfinding alpha] and that pathfinding experiments were being conducted in Second Life. As of April 19th the Pathfinding Viewer tools are now in beta.

−

During 2007 there was problems for teens registering outside of the US [http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/WEB-734 WEB-734] because of a server issue. After January 2009 this issue has been fixed.

+

On April 16th, Linden Lab announced that [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Inworld/Help-Us-Celebrate-Second-Life-s-9th-Birthday/ba-p/1488731 Second Life’s 9th Birthday] will now focus on the spotlight on community events around the grid.

−

On June 25th, 2008, at 2pm SLT, Torley Linden came to do a 1 hour long special [http://torley.com/qa-session-transcript-with-vteam-teen-mentors TSL Q&A session] with Teen Residents at TG Multimedia Stage. On July 3rd, 2008, M Linden came to the Teen Grid and hosted a [https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/SL5B/MTSL TSL special speech] about Second Life 5th Birthday.

+

On June 29th, Linden Lab announced [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Tools-and-Technology/Project-Shining-to-Improve-Avatar-and-Object-Streaming-Speeds/ba-p/1583465 Project Shining]to improve Avatar and Object Streaming Speeds in Second Life.

−

In early 2009, the TSL Mentors 2.0 program was shut down by Linden Lab.

+

== 2013 ==

−

As of 2009, Teen Second Life has around 50,000 Residents and over 200-300 concurrent online Residents on average online. There are 203 Teen Grid regions, however only around 130 are open to Teens.

+

On February 20th, Linden Lab added [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Inworld/Fresh-Spring-Login-Pages/ba-p/1899449 new Spring-themed login pages] on the official Second Life homepage.

−

For Second Life 6th Birthday in 2009, SL6B Teen region from [[Teen Second Life]] was moved over to the Main Grid and was attached to the SL6B regions. The theme this year for both SL6B and TSL Teen was The Future of Virtual Worlds.

As of 2010, the Teen Grid has 93 Mainland regions, 7 resident-owned estates, and 97 educational/project estates. At any given time, there is around 2,000 teens who have been active over the last 30 days. The usual TG concurrency is about 350 residents.

+

On April 8th, Linden Lab announced a [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Tools-and-Technology/Materials-Project-Viewer-Now-Available/ba-p/1962691 new Materials Project Viewer]for alpha testing of Normal and Specular maps on Second Life objects.

−

In February 2010, the TSL Forums was integrated into the new Second Life Forums. Teens and Adults will now share the Forums.

+

On May 29th, Linden Lab announced faster avatar loading changes with Project Shining.

−

On March 16th, 2010, [https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/community/blog/2010/03/16/green-fun-on-the-teen-grid Green Fun] on the Teen Grid.

+

On 23rd June 2013, Second Life officially turned ten years old.

−

On August 14th, 2010, Philip Linden announced that the Teen Grid would be shut down.

+

In August 2013, Linden Lab was Not supporting Liquid Mesh. They begin looking at how to support this popular hack.

+

+

On 25th September 2013, Linden Lab announces [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Introducing-SLShare-an-Easy-Way-to-Share-to-Facebook-While/ba-p/2220951 SLShare] which offers a 100% Opt-In way to share status updates, upload photos and check-in to locations in Second Life, to Facebook.

+

+

In December 2013, the Lab announced support of Liquid Mesh and the more complete solution Fitted Mesh.

On 5th March 2014, Linden Lab announces [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Introducing-SL-Go-from-OnLive/ba-p/2528009 SL Go by OnLive]. SL Go beta is a mobile Second Life viewer for Android devices that deliver a fully immersive desktop-like experience on tablets.

+

+

On 15th May 2014, Linden Lab announced [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/New-Mesh-Avatars-Now-Available-in-Second-Life/ba-p/2720912 24 new mesh avatars].

+

+

On 2nd July 2014, Linden Lab announced a limited beta test of an exciting new tool for creators called [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Tools-and-Technology/Seeking-Creators-for-the-Experience-Keys-Beta/ba-p/2764864 Experience Keys]

+

+

In October, the use of Content Delivery Network begins testing in the Preview Grid.

+

+

== 2015 ==

+

+

On 6th February 2015, Linden Lab hosted a [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Join-a-Snowball-Fight-with-Lindens-amp-Enter-Our-Photo-Booth-Fun/ba-p/2893956 snowball fight event] with the Second Life community over at Winter Wonderland.

On 16th December 2015, Linden Lab announced [https://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Introducing-Project-Bento-New-Bones-Added-to-Second-Life-Avatar/ba-p/2987206 Project Bento introducing extensions to the standard Second Life Avatar Skeleton].

+

+

== Teen Second Life ==

−

On August 20th, 2010, Terrence Linden announced that the [http://blogs.secondlife.com/community/features/blog/2010/08/20/the-future-of-teens-and-second-life Teen Grid will be shut down on 31st December 2010].

+

On February 13, 2005, Linden Lab offered "amnesty" for underaged Residents, in case they'd want to be beta testers for the new [[Teen Second Life]] (TSL) service. Before this time, Second Life was only open for Residents 18 years and older; being 17 or younger resulted in a ban. The Residents were transferred to TSL, also known as the "Teen Grid" (TG), which was exclusively for teens — with the exception of approved adults like school teachers — and no communication with the [[Main Grid]] (MG) was possible. The Teen Grid was only open during Linden-desginated staffing hours. Also, during the first few months of [http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/pic.aspx?ID=28438 TG Beta], access was restricted to those that were given an invite by an existing Resident or Linden Lab. Teens counted down to [http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/pic.aspx?ID=27618 1000 Residents on December 21, 2005].

−

On December 29th, 2010, Global Kids hosted a Youth Forum on the Teen Grid Merger inworld. [http://www.olpglobalkids.org/2010/12/teens_express_concerns_hopes_a.html Teens Express Concerns, Hopes and Plans at Forum on Second Life Teen Grid Merger].

+

Teen Second Life (Teen Grid) was open from February 14, 2005 and closed on January 21, 2011.

−

On January 21st 2011, after 1 PM Pacific [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Inworld/Teens-Welcome-to-Second-Life/ba-p/674615 Teen Grid merged] with the Main Grid. (14th February 2005 – 21st January 2011)

+

* On January 1, 2006, the [http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/pic.aspx?ID=46258 Teen Second Life (aka Teen Grid) opened 24/7].

+

* In March 2006, Global Kids was the first educational organization to enter TSL, opening an island.

* On March 17, 2007, Blue and Philip Linden hosted a townhall meeting on Global Kids island about the [http://www.holymeatballs.org/2007/03/sl_blue_and_philip_linden_pres.html past, present, and future of TSL].

+

* During 2007, there was problems for teens registering outside of the US [http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/WEB-734 because of a server issue]. After January 2009, this issue was fixed.

+

* On June 25th, 2008, at 2 PM Pacific, [[Torley Linden]] came to do an hour-long special [http://torley.com/oldblog/qa-session-transcript-with-vteam-teen-mentors TSL Q&A session] with Teen Residents at TG Multimedia Stage.

+

* On July 3rd, 2008, M Linden came to the Teen Grid and hosted a [https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/SL5B/MTSL TSL special speech] about Second Life's 5th Birthday.

+

* In early 2009, the TSL Mentors 2.0 program was shut down by Linden Lab.

+

* As of 2009, TSL had around 50,000 registered accounts and over 200-300 concurrent online Residents. There were 203 Teen Grid regions; however only around 130 are open publicly to Teens.

+

* For Second Life's 6th Birthday in 2009, SL6B Teen region was moved over to the Main Grid, and was attached to the SL6B regions. This year's SL6B theme was "The Future of Virtual Worlds".

+

* As of 2010, the Teen Grid had 93 Mainland regions, 7 Resident-owned estates, and 97 educational/project estates. At any given time, there were around 2,000 teens who were active over the last 30 days. The usual TSL concurrency is about 350 Residents.

+

* In February 2010, the TSL forums were integrated into the new Second Life Forums. Teens and Adults now shared forums.

+

* On March 16, 2010, "[http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Community-General/Green-Fun-on-the-Teen-Grid/ba-p/656891 Green Fun]" was had.

+

* On August 14, 2010, Philip Linden announced the forthcoming closure of TSL.

+

* On August 20, 2010, Terrence Linden announced that the [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Features/The-Future-of-Teens-and-Second-Life/ba-p/661576 Teen Grid will be shut down on December 31, 2010].

* On January 21, 2011, after 1 PM Pacific [http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Inworld/Teens-Welcome-to-Second-Life/ba-p/674615 TSL merged with the Main Grid].

== References ==

== References ==

Line 145:

Line 200:

== Learn more ==

== Learn more ==

−

The above contains some highlights, and further details about Second Life's history can be found in the [[Category:Culture|Culture]] and [[Category:History|History]] categories.

+

Beyond the highlights above, further details about Second Life's history can be found in the [[:Category:History|History]], [[:Category:Culture|Culture]], and [[:Category:Second Life Birthday|SL Birthday]] categories.

Latest revision as of 11:24, 6 May 2019

Contents

The beginning of Second Life

Second Life (SL) evolved as an idea by founder and former Linden Lab CEO, Philip Rosedale (aka Philip Linden). He envisioned a vast green, continuous landscape, distributed across multiple servers — and went on to build it. While he dreamed of virtual worlds since his childhood, in 1994, Rosedale first thought of connecting computers via the Internet and creating a virtual world. In 1999, he founded Linden Lab (LL). Andrew Linden stated that Linden Lab started as a hardware company geared towards the research and development of haptics. Although work was underway on a prototype called "The Rig, haptics were subsequently abandoned due to heavy patent concentration. The Linden Lab employees — commonly known as "Lindens" — needed a virtual world to go with their hardware, so in 2001 they started building "LindenWorld", as described in an early news story.

In this early state, LindenWorld wasn't open to the public, was very gun-focused (like a shooter game) and its avatars were made out of prims (called Primitars). This video shows how the world looked back then and how users could interact with it:[1]

LindenWorld was renamed into Second Life: a 3D virtual world with user generated content, where users could interact with each other in realtime.

"Originally, during the Alpha period, the grid was known as Lindenworld. As we were getting ready to launch the Beta, we decided we needed a name that would convey the expansiveness, involvement and complexity we hoped would characterize this world as it grew. We started by debating the merits of a 'place' name versus a 'descriptive' name. We believed a place name would give people a sense of destination, and possibly some added layer of meaning. And we thought a descriptive name would help people understand this new concept of a shared, 3D collaborative space.

"We had a lot of ideas for place names --- one of my favorites was Sansara, which was not only euphonic, but had an interesting meaning in the original Sanskrit, meaning roughly 'ever changing world'. Ultimately, though, we chose to go with a descriptive name, and looked at many derivatives of Terra, Viva, and life. We kept coming back to Life2, and then landed on Second Life as more interesting, more evocative and more what we hoped the world could become as it evolved and grew to be as big as life.

Second Life closed beta started in November 2002 and lasted until April 2003 when public beta started. Read more about History of SL Beta.

2003

While population and land slowly grew, Linden Lab released Second Life in June 2003. As shocking as it may seem in hindsight, back then, SL had neither a currency nor were Residents able to teleport. It was in the end of 2003 when the Linden Dollar was introduced, and the LindeX currency exchange followed about two years later.[3]

In order to restrict simulator resource usage, a tax system was introduced which required every Resident to pay a weekly fee, depending on the prims they had rezzed inworld. This system was easy to trick by packing all prims into the inventory on payment due day, then re-rezzing them again a day later.[4]

The first Telehubs were introduced in Version 1.1.0, with the feature of paying to teleport from one Telehub to another.

While in the beginning, Second Life's business model was primarily based on paid memberships (which later evolved into Premium and Basic accounts), the focus soon shifted to land sales. Residents became able to acquire and rent land, which in turn also became a business model for some entrepreneurial Residents.

2005

In March 2005 Second Life version 1.6 was rolled out bringing with it a number of features including QuickTime media streaming and a standard Second Life building interface.

In late 2005, Linden Lab removed most Telehubs on the grid, opening the way for "direct teleport" from one point to another. Previously, after teleporting, Residents had to fly from a Telehub to their specific destination. The Telehubs were mostly converted into Infohubs, meant to be community gathering spaces and "welcome areas" for new Residents.

2006

On May 1, Resident Anshe Chung was featured on the cover of the U.S. magazine BusinessWorld, reported to be the first person becoming a real-life millionaire due to Second Life business. This story brought great media coverage and pitched the population growth further.

On October 18 at precisely 8:05:45 PST, the 1,000,000th Resident joined Second Life. A special Linden Bear was created to celebrate this milestone.

On April 13, Linden Lab announced the eventual removal of the profile rating system[6], which was used for social reputation but also prone to being abused and misunderstood.

On May 21, the WindLight atmospheric rendering was announced[7] and became part of the main release in Viewer version 1.19.1 on April 2.[8] WindLight improved Second Life's graphics dramatically.

On August 2nd, Linden Lab released its new main viewer (V1.18.1-2) with in-world voice chat capabilities.

2008

On February 22, Blue Linden announced that there would be a new set of city-style themed regions named Bay City. Bay City opened for viewing on May 8, 2008, and on May 24, 2009, Bay City content was released to Residents as templates for their own creations.

Philip Rosedale announced his stepping down as CEO in mid-March[9], and introduced new CEO Mark D. Kingdon (M Linden) one month later.[10]. Philip continued to serve as Chairman on the Board of Directors.

Scripting performance enhancer Mono was launched in August, as part of the 1.24 Server deploy[12]

2009

On January 20, Linden Lab announced that it acquired the SL online marketplaces OnRez and XStreet SL (formerly SL Exchange) in order to merge and integrate them into a web shopping service for virtual goods that would become the Second Life Marketplace.[13]

In March, Linden Lab started a project to create Zindra, a new continent specifically designed for Adult content. Changes to Maturity ratings policies went live on September 15, and Zindra came online in October.

In August, former VP of Product Tom Hale (T Linden) gave a tour of the new Second Life 2.0 Viewer due to be launched in 2010. Earlier in June 2009, Massively posted a sneak preview.

2010

On January 29, Linden Lab acquired Avatars United. Avatars United was a social network for users of multiple virtual worlds to connect.

On February 9, Linden Lab launched the new Second Life Forums[14], powered by Jive Clearspace software. The old vBulletin-based forums were archived.

2011

On March 29th, Linden Lab introduced the Basic mode in Viewer 2 to improve new Resident experience in Second Life. The previous user interface is now the "Advanced mode".

On June 2nd, at 4pm PT Linden Lab performed a load test for Group Chat on the ADITI Beta grid. Many participants attended to test out group chat in Oatmeal and GC Test regions.

On July 26th, Linden Lab launched the new social web profiles.

On August 23rd, Mesh went gridwide and now all Second Life residents can benefit from the new Mesh technology.

2012

On February 16th, Linden Lab announced details about Pathfinding alpha and that pathfinding experiments were being conducted in Second Life. As of April 19th the Pathfinding Viewer tools are now in beta.

On April 16th, Linden Lab announced that Second Life’s 9th Birthday will now focus on the spotlight on community events around the grid.

On June 29th, Linden Lab announced Project Shiningto improve Avatar and Object Streaming Speeds in Second Life.

Teen Second Life

On February 13, 2005, Linden Lab offered "amnesty" for underaged Residents, in case they'd want to be beta testers for the new Teen Second Life (TSL) service. Before this time, Second Life was only open for Residents 18 years and older; being 17 or younger resulted in a ban. The Residents were transferred to TSL, also known as the "Teen Grid" (TG), which was exclusively for teens — with the exception of approved adults like school teachers — and no communication with the Main Grid (MG) was possible. The Teen Grid was only open during Linden-desginated staffing hours. Also, during the first few months of TG Beta, access was restricted to those that were given an invite by an existing Resident or Linden Lab. Teens counted down to 1000 Residents on December 21, 2005.

Teen Second Life (Teen Grid) was open from February 14, 2005 and closed on January 21, 2011.

During 2007, there was problems for teens registering outside of the US because of a server issue. After January 2009, this issue was fixed.

On June 25th, 2008, at 2 PM Pacific, Torley Linden came to do an hour-long special TSL Q&A session with Teen Residents at TG Multimedia Stage.

On July 3rd, 2008, M Linden came to the Teen Grid and hosted a TSL special speech about Second Life's 5th Birthday.

In early 2009, the TSL Mentors 2.0 program was shut down by Linden Lab.

As of 2009, TSL had around 50,000 registered accounts and over 200-300 concurrent online Residents. There were 203 Teen Grid regions; however only around 130 are open publicly to Teens.

For Second Life's 6th Birthday in 2009, SL6B Teen region was moved over to the Main Grid, and was attached to the SL6B regions. This year's SL6B theme was "The Future of Virtual Worlds".

As of 2010, the Teen Grid had 93 Mainland regions, 7 Resident-owned estates, and 97 educational/project estates. At any given time, there were around 2,000 teens who were active over the last 30 days. The usual TSL concurrency is about 350 Residents.

In February 2010, the TSL forums were integrated into the new Second Life Forums. Teens and Adults now shared forums.